New Details on Leonardo DiCaprio’s Role in Quentin Tarantino’s Ninth Film

Details about Quentin Tarantino’s new film have slowly (very slowly) begun to emerge in recent weeks, and following the casting of Leonardo DiCaprio, we now have a little more info on the untitled project’s plot — or at least DiCaprio’s corner of things. The film’s structure has been compared to Pulp Fiction, meaning it will follow a handful of intersecting stories (one of which is, presumably, the Manson Family murders), and a new report has revealed what we can expect from one of those threads.

Deadline has the scoop on the untitled project (or untitled as far as the public is concerned, anyway), which will be Quentin Tarantino’s ninth film as both writer and director. While Margot Robbie, Brad Pitt and Tom Cruise are still being eyed for leading roles, DiCaprio recently became the first actor to sign on to the film, and according to the report, his character is that of a struggling actor of sorts:

What he plays, more specifically, is an actor who had his own Western show, Bounty Law, that ran on the air from 1958 to 1963. His attempt to transition to movies didn’t work out and in 1969 — the film is set at the height of hippy Hollywood movement– he’s guesting on other people’s shows while contemplating going to Italy which has become a hotbed for low-budget Westerns.

His character is said to be joined on this Hollywood odyssey by his stuntman / stand-in — a notable detail for a couple of reasons: First, it’s likely that this would be Brad Pitt’s role should he sign on. Second, as my friend and Charles Manson expert Lindsey Romain points out, the stuntman character could be directly related to the Manson murders:

Margot Robbie is being courted for the role of Sharon Tate, the former model and wife of director Roman Polanski, who was pregnant when she and a few friends were murdered by the Manson Family.

Tarantino’s ninth film will be released on August 9, 2019 — the anniversary of Tate’s death.